


Prompto, Get Help

by TheDarkestDandelion



Series: The Daemon, the Soldier and a Stolen Bio-Weapon AU [30]
Category: Final Fantasy XV
Genre: Alternate Universe, Angst, Anxiety, Baby Prompto Argentum, Brave Prompto, Fear, Good Ardyn Izunia, Hope, Hurt/Comfort, Illnesses, Love, Multi, Panic, Parent Ardyn Izunia, Parent Cor Leonis, Prompto Argentum Is a Sweetheart, Scary Ardyn Izunia, Seizures, Unexplained Illness, Worry, ardyn lucis caelum - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-06-18
Updated: 2019-06-30
Packaged: 2020-05-13 20:40:01
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 17,750
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19258789
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TheDarkestDandelion/pseuds/TheDarkestDandelion
Summary: Cor doesn’t feel well but insists he can look after Prompto while Ardyn goes into work for a few hours. What no one realises is that the Marshal is not well at all and ends up collapsing with only his 3-year-old son there to help him.





	1. Chapter 1

They had just put Prompto to bed and were enjoying a peaceful night watching the TV. Ardyn was laid across Cor’s lap and Cor was allowing himself to rest his eyes. It had been a hard day at work with training the guard, sorting out the rota’s, dealing with Regis and Clarus teasing him, and when he got home Ardyn told him that Prompto had been violently sick. Being the protective dad Cor was, he ensured Prompto was well looked after and sat with him, tending to his every need until the three-year-old had fallen asleep.

Cor was just about to drift off when he felt a shooting pain in his stomach as Ardyn had just forced his elbow into his abdomen. His whole body jolted forward, and he let go of a loud grunt of pain.

“What?! Are you okay?” Ardyn quickly sat up and looked at Cor with worry.

Cor breathed through the pain and pushed Ardyn off of him. “Do not jab your elbow in my stomach.”

“Sorry, My Marshal.” Ardyn kissed him on the forehead and sat next to him instead of on his lap. He rested his hand on Cor’s chest and nuzzled his head into his shoulder.

They continued to watch the TV but the pain in Cor’s stomach hadn’t left him. Oh great, he must have whatever Prompto has got. Now he felt very concerned for his son. The lower half of his abdomen was cramping like hell and it didn’t help that Ardyn had accidentally shoved his elbow on the exact spot that was causing him the most discomfort. Cor began to shuffle and tried his best to ignore the pain. But when it got to the end of the time period drama that they were watching he could no longer put it off.

He moved away from Ardyn and lent forward, slightly, to see if the pain would ease. It worked for a second, but he knew he had to do something about this pain, and maybe take Prompto to the doctor’s tomorrow. Ardyn and Cor did try and avoid the doctor’s as much as they could when it came to Prompto. Only a few of the royal doctor’s knew about Prompto being part daemon and they would like to keep it that way. Cor just hoped Regis hadn’t booked an appointment for tomorrow.

“Cor darling is your stomach still hurting?” Ardyn said softly rubbing Cor’s back.

“Yeah.”

“Oh my lovely, you probably have what Prom’s got. I’ll get you something light to settle your stomach.”

Ardyn left the sofa and made his way towards the kitchen. Before he could exit the room, Cor called out after him, trying to stop Ardyn from mollycoddling him.

“Ass Hat, I don’t want to eat anything.”

“Well if you’re not feeling good you either need to be sick or you are hungry. And if you eat something we will know which one it is.”

“I hate the fact you used to be a healer.”

“No, you don’t.”

Ardyn returned with a glass of water and some toast. Despite the Marshal’s protests he ate the food anyway. Cor and Ardyn were both correct he had indeed caught whatever bug had plagued their son. About half an hour later, Cor had to go upstairs before he threw up all over the living room. Ardyn followed him to the bathroom with a potion and once Cor had taken it the pair went to bed.

By the time it was morning both Cor and Prompto felt as right as rain. Still Ardyn insisted that the pair of them go to the doctor’s and be checked out. He was happy to admit he was a fuss pot when it came to the safety and well being of his family. And after the examination, the doctor concluded it was a simple stomach bug and nothing more. Cor went back to work, not caring that he may be contagious, and Ardyn took Prompto back home so that the little boy didn’t infect Noctis. Regis would not be happy if the Prince became ill when it could easily be prevented. For the rest of the day Prompto was fine. He had not been sick once and acted like his normal bubbly self. The same could not be said for Cor though. Halfway through the day his stomach started to hurt again and caused him more problems. And because of the stress he was starting to get a migraine. When Clarus found Cor in his office with his head against the desk, with all the lights turned off, Cor was sent home. As soon as he stepped through the door Ardyn ushered him upstairs and put him to bed before tending to their son’s needs.

Cor stayed off work for the next two days. Regis and Clarus told him he was not needed and that he was to focus on getting better. Cor never understood the fuss but he decided to accept it for a change and stay at home with Ardyn and Prom. It was nice spending time with them. He only ever got the odd weekend off and the evenings to spend with his family and because of that, he savoured every last second he got with the pair of them.

Maybe he should take more time off.

On the second day Ardyn was the one that had to go into work. But he didn’t want to leave Cor if he was feeling unwell, especially if he had to look after Prom. But the Marshal wasn’t having any of it.

“I could always drop him off with Noct’s nanny if you aren’t feeling well, My Marshal.”

“Stop fussing. It’s just a stomach ache, I’ll be fine by tomorrow.”

“Yes, but you are not going into work because of it.” Ardyn crossed his arms at Cor. The man was too stubborn for his own good and Prompto wasn’t contagious anymore. It would be no trouble giving him to the nanny and both Noctis and Prom would love to have a play date, they always did.

“I’m fine.” Cor grumbled. He ruffled Prom’s hair as he ran past him. The golden haired boy was singing the Chocobo theme song pretending he was riding one. Wait a second, why was Ardyn going to the Citadel. He didn’t work there anymore. He didn’t work at all. He had become a full-time parent after they adopted Prom. “Anyway, you quit 2 years ago. Why are you going into work?”

“I told you this yesterday.” Ardyn said, getting more concerned with Cor’s welfare by the second.

“Ah, just tell me again.” Cor was getting annoyed now. He felt better then he had done in the last three days, Ardyn really needed to stop worrying.

“Because my darling nephew and my annoying brother begged me to sort out a trade issue.” Ardyn cleared his throat and did a very good impersonation of Regis’s voice. Well, that was just one of the many abilities that Ardyn possessed and it always made his son laugh to hear the different voices Ardyn used when he read a story to him. “Regis said: ‘Ardyn please could you come in and charm the ambassador of Accordo for me? He is a difficult man to read and I really need your help to settle this trade deal.’”

“And what did Somnus say?” Cor rolled his eyes, half expecting Ardyn to do an impression of his brother. He didn’t.

Ardyn shrugged his shoulders. “‘Ardyn, the ambassador of Accordo is a bigger prick then you. Come and threaten him so he doesn’t side with the Niffs.’ I gave him a funny look until he added the word please.”

“Right.”

Prompto suddenly ran in-between the pair as he realised that Ardyn was probably going to leave now. He didn’t like it when either of them left. And it was strange that his dada was going to work instead of his daddy. He didn’t like the change in routine. Prompto jumped up and down and gestured for Ardyn to pick him up. Of course, Ardyn could not possibly deny his child of any request and picked him up and threw him into the air. It made Prompto laugh and Cor shot an evil glare at him, warning him not to ever do that in his presence ever again. Ardyn caught him and smiled at Prompto, pretending that Cor wasn’t staring at him. 

“Right Sunbeam are you going to be a good boy and look after daddy for me? For he is too stubborn and says he can look after you when really he is the one that needs looking after.”

“Yes, dada.” Prompto saluted. He saw that the Guard and Glaive did that to uncle Regis and since then he had begun to copy them.  

“Good boy. I love you, millions.” Ardyn smiled kissing Prompto on the cheek before putting him back on the floor.  

Once on the ground Prom ran over to Cor and latched himself onto his leg. Cor did the same thing as Ardyn and picked him up. And once he had done that, Prompto wrapped his arms around Cor’s neck. Whenever, he thought Noctis or Gladiolus was ill he would always give them a hug, because like his dada said: ‘hugs always make everything better’. Cor returned the hug and smiled. He loved this kid so much.

“We’ll be fine.” Cor reassured Ardyn, still hugging Prompto.

“If you’re not, call me.”

“In the middle of a rather important, and potentially game-changing, meeting.”

“Yes.”

Rules never seemed to apply to Ardyn, so Cor didn’t understand why he was surprised by that declaration. Because he wanted Ardyn to stop fussing he gave in to his request.

“If it will shut you up then fine.”

Ardyn took a few steps forward and closed the distance between them all. He kissed Prompto on the head and then Cor on the lips before saying his goodbyes. “Love you both with all my heart. See you both later.”

“Bye, bye dada.” Prompto smiled waving as his dada walked out of the living room.

* * *

 

Cor was fine. All he needed to do was take a potion and that would be it.

And he was fine. He and Prompto set up and played with his train set, did some colouring, had lunch and played with his new dog soft toy. Cor wasn’t in any pain at all and he thought that his illness had finally passed.

That was until Prompto decided to watch some cartoons. He put on the TV and when he sat down and rested for 5 minutes his stomach started to hurt again. This time it was far more intense then it had been over the past couple of days.

Cor glanced at the clock and saw that it was 2:30. Ardyn would still be in the meeting and so would Regis, Clarus and Somnus. Despite what Ardyn had told him, he was not going to call him to come back over this. All he needed to do was to be sick and get it over and done with. He rose from the chair and told Prompto to stay put until he got back.

He left the room and started to make his way up the stairs. When he got half way up them he had to hold his stomach and let out a grunt of pure agony. His vision began to blur and he suddenly went very light headed. Cor knelt down on the stairs gripping his stomach and tried to vomit on the staircase but that didn’t happen. He felt his legs go numb and he couldn’t prevent himself from falling backwards. He tumbled down the stairs, hitting the floor with a loud thud.

Cor slowly opened his eyes and tried to push himself up. But the pain surging through his stomach, chest and head was preventing him from moving. All he could do was wrap his arms around his stomach and grunt in pain. He knew he couldn’t stay there. He had to call someone, and he had to call someone quick. He should have just let Ardyn take Prom with him.

_Shit Prompto._

The boy couldn’t be left here alone. Just as Cor started to panic his son came into view and looked more worried then he had ever seen him before. Cor knew that his son couldn’t physically help him in any way. He wasn’t strong enough to pull him up and he must be terrified.

“Daddy!” Prompto cried kneeling next to Cor and shaking him to get him to move.

Cor forced himself to not make a sound, as only pain would come out of his mouth, as Prom began shaking his chest. Instead, he took in a deep breath and calmly spoke to him, so that he didn’t cause his son any more distress. Cor sounded weak, but he needed Prompto to help him. He needed to call someone, even if it was an ambulance. “Prom, get daddy’s phone.”

Prompto looked so scared and tears were rolling down his face. Cor bit through the pain and held onto his son’s hand to try to calm him down. “Prompto. Everything is going to be alright. Please, just get daddy’s phone. I need to call dada.”

Hearing the word ‘dada’ Prompto’s face turned from being completely terrified to more controlled. “Dada, get dada.”

“Yes, get my phone so I can call dada.” Cor tried to move again but it hurt too much. He didn’t want to put Prom in this position but they needed help.

Prompto stood up and walked into the living room. Cor had placed the phone on the arm of the sofa so Prom should be able to grab it. However, Prompto didn’t come back, and Cor began to panic.

“Prom? PROM!”

He regretted shouting. He began to roll over in excruciating pain. Tears began to form in his eyes and he went back to gripping his stomach as tight as he could. The pain in his head was making it difficult for him to see now and he started to scream in pain.

* * *

 

“You have no idea how much I have missed you being on the council.” Somnus admitted after the meeting had finished and the ambassador had left.

Ardyn wrapped his arm around Somnus’s shoulders and pulled him in to ruffle his hair. “Awww, my little brother loves me!”

Somnus angrily pushed Ardyn off him, tidying his hair and pouting with annoyance. “I wouldn’t go that far.”

Ardyn just laughed. He did love picking holes into all of that man’s arguments. Somnus was right, the man was a bigger prick then him. He was a little surprised that Niflheim hadn’t tried to attack Accordo yet with the mouth that man had on him. And after that meeting… that gentleman was going to think twice before completely surrendering to the Niffs every whim. That’s if he didn’t want to get on Ardyn’s bad side. No one ever did.

“Thank you so much Ardyn. I don’t think that would have gone nearly as smoothly if you weren’t here.” Regis congratulated Ardyn.

He agreed with Somnus, it was nice having Ardyn back defending his every word. Somnus was good at arguing but he was not as good as Ardyn was. Somehow, his uncle could turn someone else’s words on their heads and use it to his own advantage. He was a great politician but he would never force Ardyn to come back to work full time. They agreed he would return only on the rare occasions, like today.  

“See I am useful for somethings.” Ardyn smiled, he loved taking the glory for things and he was going to rub this victory in Somnus’s face for weeks.

“Not everything though.” Somnus smirked, purposely annoying him.

“Gods! Clarus tell them to stop arguing. That is one thing I haven’t missed about you being here.”

“Regis, they’re not.” Clarus stated, looking at Regis with a bit of concern.

“It will turn into a fight though.”

“Regis, you know us too we-”

Ardyn stopped in mid-sentence and snapped his head away from the group. He smelt into the air and he could sense panic and he swore he heard a child scream. He couldn’t have heard that. Noctis would probably be having a nap and Gladio was at home. Because of the ambassador’s visit, there was no way anyone would have brought their child into work today.

“Ardyn… are you okay?” Regis asked carefully.

Ardyn didn’t hear it again, so he turned back. “Did any of you hear that?”

“Hear what?” 

“Dada! Dada!”

Ardyn immediately turned around and saw Prompto running towards him. Tears were streaming down his face and he had gone all red. He looked absolutely terrified. Ardyn’s eyes went wide with worry, without wasting any more time he warped across the room and scooped the boy up in his arms. Ardyn couldn’t comfort him or ease his cries as Prom began pulling at his coat as if to lead him somewhere.

“Dada!” Prompto’s cries got louder as he continued to pull at his coat.

“Prompto sweetheart, what on Eos are you doing here? What’s the matter?” Ardyn hugged him and rocked him in his arms to calm him down but none of that worked. Prompto just seemed to get more panicky and he began to cry more.

“Daddy’s hurt! Daddy’s really hurt!”

_Cor..._

Ardyn looked up and realised that Cor was no where to be seen. Ardyn felt his heart began to race at his son’s words and he could feel the daemons start to bounce and scatter inside of him. He gulped and counted to 3 before he even attempted to ask what had happened.

When he was satisfied he was calm enough he looked into Prom’s eyes. “Where is daddy now?”

“Home. He’s on the floor and he’s hurt.”

Ardyn turned around as fast as he could and pushed Prompto into Somnus’s arms. “Look after him!”

He started to run and within a second, he was no longer in the Citadel. He was in his front room, frantically looking and turning around to see if he could spot Cor. He rushed into the hallway and saw Cor on the floor at the bottom of the stairs, crying in pain, holding on to his stomach. Ardyn’s heart dropped as he fell to his knees. He grabbed on to Cor to make him aware he was there.

They were both so scared. Cor didn’t know where Prompto had gone and was worried that something must have happened to him as well, but when he saw Ardyn’s face a wave of relief hit him. He was still in unbearable pain, but Prom had done exactly what he said he was going to do, and he felt himself relax a little.

Ardyn was far from relaxed, he placed Cor’s head into his lap and spoke at lightning speed. “Cor! It’s alright. I am here, everything’s going to be okay.”

“Ardyn… It hurts so fucking much.” Cor grunted fighting the urge to scream as another wave of pain hit him.

“What hurts? Cor you need to tell me.” Ardyn couldn’t control his voice. He was in a panic as he wiped the sweat of Cor’s forehead with his hand, whilst Cor was tossing and turning in his lap.

“My stomach.”

“Okay, you need to lay still.”

Ardyn carefully placed Cor back on the ground and ran into the kitchen.  

Cor’s chest began to tighten again, and he screamed after Ardyn in complete and utter terror. “Don’t you dare fucking leave me!”

“I am just getting an elixir!” Ardyn called back from the kitchen. He knew for a fact he hadn’t put any in his armiger and he wasn’t gone for more than 5 seconds. He threw open the cabinet door, rummaging through its contents not caring if anything fell out or smashed and raced back into the hallway and placed Cor’s head in his lap again. He tried to sit Cor up without causing him any more pain and placed the bottle at his lips. “Drink. That’s it.”

Cor’s throat tighten as he drank the substance and it didn’t have any effect on him. In fact, the pain got worse. Cor grabbed onto Ardyn’s leg and screamed into his thigh as the pain flew throughout the entirety of his body. Every part of his body felt like it was on fire and there was nothing he could do to sooth the pain. Ardyn held on to him tightly as he screamed and when the pain looked like it had eased Ardyn tried to pick him up.

“I need to get you to the hospital.” Ardyn placed one arm behind his neck and with the other, he hooked it underneath Cor’s knees. He attempted to pick him up as fast as he could without hurting him and he failed.

Cor pushed him off of him and held on to his stomach again. He started to roll on the floor and scream. “FUCK! I can’t! STOP it hurts too much.”

Ardyn carefully placed him back down and horror soon took hold of him. In a second he felt Cor’s body stiffen up underneath him, he saw Cor’s eyes roll backwards and he witnessed Cor’s entire body start to jerk and shake.

“Cor? Cor!”

Ardyn knew he couldn’t hear him. Ardyn quickly ripped his coat off himself, rolled it up and placed it underneath Cor’s head as he continued to shake uncontrollably. Ardyn tried to remain calm, as he gently pulled Cor’s head to the side, so that he didn’t choke on his saliva, and watched helplessly, unable to do anything but wait until Cor had stopped.


	2. Chapter 2

As soon as Cor stopped his body went limp.

Ardyn carefully placed him on his side and checked to see that Cor was breathing.  He then waited two minutes for him to regain consciousness. Cor didn’t. Ardyn gulped away his panic and carefully picked Cor up and teleported them both to the Citadel’s medical centre. He rushed past the guard and glaives that were patrolling the area, ignoring their offers of help, until he found Regis’s doctor and ordered her to help him. From there Cor was swiftly taken to one of the private rooms and was tended to immediately. Ardyn wasn’t allowed to enter the room until the doctors were satisfied that the Marshal was stable. Ardyn was forced to remain outside, unable to see into the room because the blinds had been pulled across. He was forced to become an outsider and was not allowed to be informed of his own husband’s health.

A nurse came through the door a couple of minutes later to ask Ardyn a few questions. He told her everything that had transpired and informed her that Cor had been unwell for the past couple of days. Then it was a waiting game. Ardyn still wasn’t allowed access into the room and the blinds were blocking his view. He was growing more agitated by the second and he knew he had to calm himself down before the daemons thought they could use his raw state as a means to hurt people. He wasn’t about to let that happen and he needed to stay as sane as he could in case Prompto needed him. But his overprotectiveness and loyalty for his husband prevented him from leaving to find his son. Prompto was with Somnus, as much as Ardyn hated it, he was in the safest place right now.

After half an hour the blinds were opened, but Ardyn still wasn’t allowed in the room. The doctor’s still feared that the Marshal would be in a considerable amount of pain when he woke up, so they left him to rest until they got the results back from the tests they had taken. Ardyn was growing increasingly angrier at the staff as he was denied to be in the same room as Cor. However, he had to control himself. He had to calm down. Ardyn decided to just stand at the window and watch Cor from the other room. Cor had a nurse in there with him, but Ardyn didn’t want to take any chances and continued to watch in case he noticed any changes to Cor’s state. Ardyn had been so caught up in his own emotions that he had failed to order someone to inform Regis and Clarus what had happened. However, the King and Shield knew exactly where Ardyn would have taken Cor and they were already on their way down to the medical centre.

Regis rushed into the waiting room followed closely by Clarus. Neither of them had been informed of what had happened yet and they had been fearing the worse for the last 45 minutes. Regis quickly stood by Ardyn and he gasped at the sight of his honorary little brother. 

The King turned to his uncle and, given the situation, he spoke as gentle as he could to him. “What happened?”

Ardyn just ignored him and not once did he divert his gaze from Cor.

“Ardyn?” Clarus tried that time. But again, Ardyn ignored him. And Clarus didn’t have time for this behaviour. “For fuck sake. I am finding a doctor.”

The Shield fled the room leaving the two royals staring through the window at the sleeping Marshal. Regis was beside himself with worry for both Cor and Ardyn at the moment. And all the King wanted to do was to reassure his uncle that Cor was going to be okay. Cor didn’t get the nickname of ‘Immortal’ for nothing. Regis carefully placed a hand on Ardyn’s shoulder, fully expecting Ardyn to twitch or act aggressively towards him. Ardyn didn’t, he just continued to look through the glass.

“Ardyn? Ardyn, can you look at me? Ardyn?” Regis accepted that he wasn’t going to get a response and decided to try and lessen Ardyn’s worries. “Cor is going to be alright. And I thought you would like to know Prompto is safe and is with Somnus, Noctis and Noct’s nanny. And umm… Somnus explained to us how Prompto got into the Citadel, that issue can be dealt with later. Anyway, if you need anything Clarus and I are here for you. Ardyn?”

Regis stepped away from Ardyn to give him some space. They remained in silence until Clarus came back with Doctor Aeris. Regis placed all his attention on Doctor Aeris and waited for her to explain exactly what had happened and what they were doing for Cor. 

“Your Majesty, Lord Amicitia. I understand that this is quite a stressful situation. You need to understand that we are doing everything we can to help the Marshal.”

“Can you just get to the point.” Clarus snapped sharply at her.

Doctor Aeris nodded. “Of course. From what his Grace has said, it appears that the Marshal has had a seizure.”

“A seizure?” Regis repeated getting more worried. He knew there wasn’t something right on the day they sent Cor home. He should have insisted that he be checked over again.

“Yes, Your Majesty. As of yet, we don’t know what could have caused it, however, we do suspect it to be non-epileptic. And for that reason, we are currently running a series of tests to check for toxins and any other harmful substances. We should have the results back in an hour or so.”

“Toxins? You think he’s been poisoned?”

“We can’t know for certain yet. However, all the signs do indicate that. Looking at the Marshal’s medical records, he is as healthy as he can be for someone of his lifestyle. As far as we know there is no history of epilepsy in his family. He has had a few head injuries in the past that could have contributed to this, it could be down to severe stress or an underlining mental health illness that no one is aware of. At this moment in time, I couldn’t possibly give you a full diagnosis.”

Thud!

Regis, Clarus and Doctor Aeris turned as Ardyn had kicked a nearby chair in an attempt to control his anger. He clenched his fists together and thought about all the awful and horrible things he was going to do to the person who hurt Cor. It might not even be poison yet, but it did not stop Ardyn from forming together a plan to end that person’s life, whoever it may be.

He took in a series of deep breaths and finally spoke. “Thank you, Doctor. Just… please find out what’s wrong with him.”

“Certainly, your Grace.” Doctor Aeris bowed and left the waiting room.

“Ardyn, he’ll be alright. He has pulled through a lot worse than this.” Clarus nodded, hoping that would calm Ardyn down. It wasn’t going too. Nothing was.

* * *

 

The test took longer than they were originally told and because of that Regis told Ardyn to go and check on Prompto before the boy got too worried. The King told Ardyn that neither Clarus or he would leave in case Cor woke up and that Cor would be mad at Ardyn if he didn’t go and see Prompto. Ardyn couldn’t really argue with him there.

He went up to Noct’s nursery to find the little Prince asleep cuddling up next to his son who was talking to Somnus. Prom looked less worried then he did earlier, but it was clear that he was still panicky and distressed about what had happened. 

It didn’t take long for Prompto to notice his dada, and he removed himself from Noct’s hold, who was still asleep and ran to Ardyn who gladly picked him up.

“Dada!”

“Hello, Sunbeam. Have you been good for Uncle Somnus and Noctis?”

Prompto nodded. “Yeah. We’ve read stories and Noctis and I played with our Chocobo toys and farm animals, then he fell asleep… Dada? Is daddy okay?”

Ardyn bit his lip and glanced over to Somnus, who for once looked genuinely concerned. He didn’t know what to tell him, because he didn’t have a clue what was wrong with Cor. He couldn’t lie to his son either. This family had done enough of that in the past.

Ardyn held Prompto closer to him and spoke to him softly. “Daddy is currently being looked after by the doctor’s, you don’t need to worry because he is getting all the help that he needs. Prompto, I am very proud of you. You were so brave to come and get me. And because you were so brave we can get daddy better. Everything is going to be alright.”

“Dada, you need a hug.”

“Yes, I do.” Ardyn agreed as Prompto wrapped his arms around his neck. He held on to Prom as tight as he could without hurting him and refused to allow the scourge to escape out of his eyes. He rubbed Prompto’s back and smiled. “I love you Prompto.”

“I love you too dada.”

Ardyn stayed with Prompto for a little while longer and told Somnus his theory as to how Prompto knew exactly where he was. Ardyn was the only daemonic being, besides Prompto, that was in Insomnia. Therefore, it was easy for the little boy to teleport himself to where he needed to be. Ardyn also asked Somnus if he would continue to look after Prompto until Cor had woken up, the Founder King didn’t refuse.

Somehow when shit hit the fan, the brothers managed to put their differences aside until things were sorted out. Right afterwards, they would go back to being each other’s worst nightmare.   

* * *

 

Two hours later Doctor Aeris finally came back with the results and Ardyn was very eager to find out what had happened.

“What’s wrong with him!”

“Ardyn, you need to remain calm.” Regis warned him. He didn’t need Ardyn losing control over this, especially as Cor was so ill.

“Sorry. Sorry.”

Doctor Aeris gave him a sympathetic smile. “It’s quite alright, Your Grace. I am sorry that this has taken so long but we had to redo the tests after we got the first set of results. However, the results came back the same.”

“Why did you redo them?” Clarus raised an eyebrow at her. That was never a good sign.

“Because nothing came up. We did blood tests, urine tests, we have used an electrocardiogram to check his heart. We have even tested the function of his liver and yet nothing. Nothing alarming or life-threatening came up at all. He is as healthy as he was after his last set of medical examinations. There is no reason why a seizure would have occurred or the stomach pains. This is unheard of and I am sorry I can’t give you anything substantial.”

“No! You have got to have missed something! This isn’t right! He is clearly sick, and you need to find out exactly what is wrong with my husband!” Ardyn shouted, nearly losing control of himself.

“We are doing everything we can.”

“TRY HARDER!” 

“ARDYN STOP!” Regis shouted putting himself in-between his enraged uncle and Doctor Aeris.

But that didn’t stop Ardyn from snarling at the King. Clarus quickly pushed Regis out of the way and summoned his weapon in case Ardyn needed to have some sense knocked into him. Ardyn continued to growl inhumanely at the Shield, but it didn’t stop Clarus from getting in the man’s face and shouting at him.

“Listen! We care about Cor just as much as you do! If you can’t calm down, you are leaving!”

“Clarus be careful...” Regis gulped. There was no telling what Ardyn would do to Clarus if he pressed the wrong buttons.

“Get a hold of yourself Ardyn!”

“Sorry… sorry.” Ardyn violently shook his head and backed away from Clarus. He grabed at his hair and grunted in pain as he forced the daemons back down. He had to get a hold of himself. Even if the worse came to the worse, he had to be there for Prom… After a few moments, Ardyn contained himself, blinking and apologising. “I am sorry. I am just really worried. Please, please just get him better.”

“We are your Grace. We promise we will get to the bottom of this.” Doctor Aeris said, trying not to sound too on edge.

* * *

 

Ardyn was finally allowed in the room after that brief talk. Regis and Clarus did warn him that they had placed a few of the Kingsglaive outside the room in case he was to lose it again. Which was fair enough.

Ardyn sat by Cor’s bed and held his hand as the nurse woke him up. The Marshal started to stir which prompted Ardyn to start running his fingers along Cor’s scalp. This always calmed Cor down when he was stressed or he had a migraine, and all Ardyn wanted to do was to make this situation as comfortable as he could for him. When he saw Cor’s eyes start to flutter, Ardyn calmly spoke to him.  

“Cor? Cor darling? Are you alright?”

Cor blinked a few times to get used to the light, and when his vision became less blurry he focused his gaze on Ardyn. He had never seen Ardyn looked so relieved in his life. He had no idea how long he had been out for, but that caused him very little concern. He was more worried about their son. Cor questioned Ardyn in a strained voice. “Ardyn… where’s Prom?”

“He’s fine. Somnus is currently looking after him for us. And from my understanding, despite it being way past his bedtime, both he and Noct are currently thrashing Somnus on a game console that Gladio gave to Noct.”

Ardyn proceeded to explain to Cor what had happened and how he ended up in hospital. He also informed Cor that Regis and Clarus were now aware of Prompto’s teleporting ability. Once he was certain Cor understood what was going on, it was Ardyn’s turn to ask the Marshal what had happened at home.

After hearing the events that had taken place it left both men feeling incredibly guilty. Ardyn definitely should not have gone into work this morning and as for Cor, he was mortified that he had put Prompto through all that unnecessary heartache and distress.

“You were right. He should have gone with you to the Citadel this morning.”

“No. For once I will gladly say that I was wrong. If I had taken him, there would be no telling what state you would be in.”

“Still... He could have been hurt and there would have been nothing I could have done to help him. We fucked up.”

Ardyn wrapped his arm around Cor and kissed him on the top of his head. Ardyn didn’t want Cor to blame himself for this. He couldn’t help the fact he was ill, and from the regular updates Somnus was giving him, Ardyn knew Prom was as fine as he could possibly be.

Although, that didn’t prevent Ardyn from getting upset. He hadn’t been that scared in a very long time and he was so grateful that both Cor and Prompto were in safe hands. As Ardyn began to comfort Cor, he felt his throat begin to tighten and his voice turned raspy. “Do not focus on the ifs and buts please? It’s over now.”

Cor heard the change and removed his head from Ardyn’s chest to look his husband in the eye. “Ardyn… you could at least take on board your own advice?”

“Well I am a hypocrite.” Ardyn nodded slightly and then allowed himself to stop fighting the scourge that had been threatening to leak out of his eyes all day. “Please, look after yourself and stop putting unnecessary stress on yourself. Please promise me, you will never do this to me ever again.”

“I don't intend to.” Cor reassured him.

“You scared the life out of me. Please just promise me…. I can’t lose you… please just… please…”

“Ass Hat don’t cry. I’m alright.” Cor smiled, wrapping his arms around his waist and hugging him tightly. Ardyn pulled him in closer and for once didn’t bury his head into his hair. They already had enough on their plate, he didn’t want to accidently infect Cor with the scourge as well. It took a lot for Ardyn to cry and in these rare situations, Cor didn’t always know what to do. The only fail safe he had was to hug him and try to calm him down. That’s what they did. They remained hugging each other for a while.

Cor waited until Ardyn had stopped sniffing to ask his next question. “Ardyn? Can you go and get Prom for me?”

“Yes.”

* * *

 

When Ardyn went up to the nursery he found his son, his brother and his nephew all fast asleep on the floor. Ardyn called Regis so he could come and get Noctis, and before the King arrived it gave Ardyn time to gently wake up Prompto. Prompto wasn’t like Noct. He was a lot easier to wake up and when Ardyn asked him if he wanted to see Cor, the little boy grew a smile, that was full of hope, on his face. On the way down to the medical centre, Ardyn reassured him that Cor was fine, but he had to be quiet because the rest of the building were probably asleep.

As soon as the door opened Prompto’s smile got wider and Ardyn gladly passed their son over to Cor.

“Hello mate.” Cor smiled, giving his son a hug.

“Daddy! Are you okay?” Prompto asked, refusing to let go of his dad’s neck.

Cor rocked Prom in his arms. “I am. You, young man, are the bravest person in the whole world. You are even braver than me. Thank you so much for getting dada, you really helped me.”

“I love you daddy.”

“I love you more.”

They spent an hour together, and during that time Prompto told his fathers of how nice Somnus had been and actually expressed concern for both Cor and Ardyn. Ardyn laughed but stopped when he saw Cor giving him a funny look. Prompto didn’t notice. He continued to tell them that Noctis had done his best to try and keep Prom’s mind off everything and even let him have one of his many blankets. Prom thought it was a shame that Gladio wasn’t there, but they made do with what they had. On the hour Cor and Ardyn decided it was time to put Prom to bed. Ardyn still had his quarters within the Citadel, which meant that Prompto was going to have somewhere comfy to sleep. Ardyn was still worried about Cor, so he wasn’t going to sleep tonight. He would watch over Prom and keep his phone on him at all times, in case Cor’s health changed during the night and he needed to be contacted. Cor told him that he was being irrational and that there was nothing to worry about. But he didn’t fight Ardyn when he told him to get more sleep.  

Cor went back to sleep and during the night he started to toss and turn. His temperature kept raising and falling forcing him to wake up every now and again. His stomach pain had returned, but because he was too exhausted he didn’t bother pressing the buzzer. If he did, he knew Ardyn would be down here in seconds and Prompto would be thrown back into Somnus’s or a nanny’s care. He bit through the pain and forced himself to go back to sleep. The same process happened at least five more times before Cor couldn’t take it anymore.

He sat up and flicked the light switch that was just above his head. That would alert the nurses and he wouldn’t have Ardyn down here fussing. His stomach began to throb again, and to try and ease the pain, he lent forward.

Something wasn’t right. He felt strange. It felt like something had been placed between his stomach and his thighs.

He looked down at himself and he nearly fell out of bed due to shock. For his stomach had bloated out at least 3 times it’s normal size and the throbbing pulsing pain hadn’t gone away. His breathing deepened, and he screamed out in shock and terror.

“WHAT THE FUCK!”


	3. Chapter 3

Ardyn, Regis and Clarus were contacted and were told, with urgency, to get themselves down to the medical center at once.

After waking up Somnus and putting him in-charge of Prompto, Ardyn was down in seconds. Regis took 10 minutes to get down and as for Clarus, it took him half an hour. His wife was feeling unwell, so he had to bring Gladiolus along with him. Just like Ardyn had done with Prompto, the Shield forced Somnus to look after Gladio as well. Only when all three men were standing outside the Marshal’s room, where they told what had happened that night. However, they were only informed that Cor’s condition had taken a turn for the worst and that was it. No details at all. Which of course infuriated Ardyn.

And Ardyn’s anger and worry only increased when they were told, that for the time being, no one but the staff were allowed to enter the room again. However, before Ardyn could break down the door and demand entry, Regis and Clarus reminded him of what had happened yesterday and that they didn’t have a problem with removing him from the Citadel if he didn’t get a grip of himself. Luckily, for everyone involved, this time they didn’t have to wait for hours. The trio only waited a further 10 minutes before Doctor Aeris came out of the Marshal’s room and she looked as if she had seen a ghost.

She cleared her throat, but her voice was far from steady. “Your Majesty, Your Grace, My Lord Shield, I am very sorry that I have kept you all waiting. However… The Marshal’s condition has taken a rather unexpected turn.”

Ardyn did not like the sound of that at all. He bit his lip before he had another outburst, and actually thought before he spoke. “What’s happened? Is Cor okay?”

“That’s the thing, Your Grace, he seems perfectly well enough… I’ve never seen anything like this in my entire career and I honestly don’t know what to do.”

Regis noticed that her hands were starting to shake, and he quickly turned to Ardyn to tell him to calm down before they took any further action, giving the doctor time to also calm down. Doctor Aeris attempted to inform them but as she began, she started stuttering and failed to give them anything substantial. Regis’s and Clarus’s emotions were slowly starting to get the better of them too. Why couldn’t she just tell them?

And instead of Ardyn biting her head off, it was Clarus. “Can you just tell us what’s happened!”

“It’s better if I show you.”

She opened the door and finally, all of them could see Cor.

Ardyn was the first to go in. He phased past Doctor Aeris and nearly ran over to the bed but was stopped in his tracks when he saw how pissed off Cor looked. And all of the Marshal’s rage was coming his way. Ardyn went to ask what the matter was, but when he had a proper look at his husband his face dropped. Cor had his arms folded across his chest and they were resting on top of his stomach. Ardyn blinked a couple of times to ensure that he wasn’t imagining things and he wasn’t. Cor’s stomach was at least 4 or maybe 5 times the size of what it was last night and Cor looked like he was in a lot of pain. Ardyn couldn’t say anything…. He had no idea what the hell was going on.

Regis and Clarus had the same reaction as the immortal being, when they laid eyes on their honorary baby brother. However, Cor didn’t acknowledge their presence. Instead, he looked Ardyn dead in the eye and spat words as sharp as blades at him.

“Caelum. I am going to murder you.”

Cor hadn’t called Ardyn that in years and it sent shivers down Clarus’s and Regis’s spine because he only ever did that when he was furious at Ardyn. By the looks of things, Ardyn may possibly know what was going on but they didn’t. The worry and the anticipation was building as no one in the room said anything.   

Because no one was speaking, Regis plucked up the courage to ask, very feeblishly, what was on everyone’s minds: “What is that?”

Doctor Aeris said nothing. All she did was turn a screen around, that was beside Cor’s bed, and the image that was revealed to them took the wind out of Ardyn, Regis and Clarus. All of them knew what that equipment was. It was an ultrasound. And on the screen, as plain as day, was a daemon.

A FUCKING DAEMON!

Regis’s and Clarus’s jaws dropped to the ground and their eyes filled up with worry. And Cor still hadn’t looked at them. He was staring down his husband, who had now taken a few steps away from his bed. Because Cor was staring at Ardyn; Regis, Clarus and Doctor Aeris faced him as well. He was the only one who should have an answer to this. But the Accused looked as shocked as the rest of them and he changed his mind. Cor falling down the stairs and having a seizure was no longer in the top 10 things that had managed to terrify him in the last century. This was, and it was at the top of the fucking list.

Ardyn gulped. “Oh shit.”

“Shit? Is that all you can say: OH SHIT!!” Cor screamed, eyes roaring with blue fire.

“Darling… I don’t know what to say.”

“Neither do I.” Regis gasped, his mouth still hadn’t closed.  

“THIS IS ALL YOUR FAULT!”

Cor jolted up, slamming his fist against the bed. He looked as if he was about to jump out of his bed and tear Ardyn apart, and that look was enough for both Regis and Clarus to get out of their shocked state.   

Regis placed his hands out in front of him. “Cor, calm down. You getting worked up is not going to help you in the slightest.”

“Lay the fuck back down!” Clarus ordered, trying to push Cor back down on to the bed, without aggravating the daemon.

“CALM DOWN! YOU’RE NOT THE ONE WITH A FUCKING DAEMON GROWING INSIDE OF YOU!!” 

“Marshal Leonis, I have to agree with his Majesty and Lord Amicitia. Getting stressed will not do you any good. You need to remain still and calm.” Doctor Aeris finally spoke. And her words were surprisingly enough to get Cor to listen. But everyone in that room could sense how scared and angry he was. Everyone looked scared. She knew then she had to try and lessen the tension. “Marshal, we ran another series of test and from the results, we can tell you are **not** infected with the starscourge. Because of that, we can try our best to work with what we have. Now, Your Grace. What do we do?”

“Why are you asking me?” Ardyn said staring at Cor’s stomach, still in shock.

“Ardyn!” Cor growled.

“I don’t know how this could have possibly happened. Never in 2000 years has anything remotely similar to this happened. I can’t reproduce, I can’t even infect anyone via release. At the moment, I can’t even process any of this.”

Ardyn felt his body being turned around and Clarus was standing right in front of him. He had gone red with rage and he looked like he was going to punch him in the face. “I don’t believe you.”

“You two are idiots. You do know what a condom is don’t you!” Regis sounded more worried than mad. All he wanted was to ensure that Cor was alright. But how could he be? He must be absolutely terrified. However, Cor would never let anyone know that. He had a daemon growing inside of him and his uncle, the King of the Daemons, as he liked to call himself, didn’t have a single clue of what to do.

“Don’t look at me! He told me not to use one.” Ardyn explained, defending himself and Cor did not take lightly to that.

“Why the FUCK did you listen to me?!”

“Because I didn’t know that this was possible! If I did, believe me, darling, I wouldn’t have done it. And we have unprotected sex all the time. How was I meant to know I would do this to you?!”

They weren’t getting anywhere, and Cor was looking more stressed, scared and upset with every word spoken. And Clarus couldn’t take it any longer. He walked away from Ardyn and headed to the door.

“Clarus where are you going?” Regis asked in a panicked tone. They couldn’t leave now, not when Cor needed them.

“I think he is lying! And I am going to find the only other person who has lived as long as he has to get answers.”

* * *

 

“Grandpa smells! Grandpa smells!”

Noctis shouted as he, Prompto and Gladio were running around Somnus, who was sitting in the middle of the floor, trying his hardest to prevent them from playing pile on. He didn’t like children and somehow he had wound up looking after all three of them. They had nannies for a reason. But no, being the third person that had the most power in this country didn’t stop anyone from throwing their children at him.

“You three are little rodents.” Somnus sighed, ensuring that none of them tried to jump on his back. Prom had already done that once today. And once was enough.

“Nah, ah. Rodents are small.” Gladio shook his head, still running around the former king.

“Yeah. We aren’t as small as row-dent’s.” Noctis agreed.

“You three are driving me crazy.” Somnus grunted digging his nails into his head. Couldn’t someone just walk in and take these kids off him!

Somnus then felt a pair of hands grab his own and tried to lower them from his head. He looked up and saw little Prompto smiling at him.

“Don’t be mad. I love you, uncle Som.”

“At least one of you is kind.” Somnus smiled, ruffling his hair. He liked Prom.

Noctis and Gladio stopped running around the Former King when they heard the door opening. Upon seeing Clarus, Gladio shouted for him, ran up to him and gave him a hug. Once Gladio was back on the ground, Noct’s nanny walked in and greeted the little Prince and Prompto.

Clarus spoke loudly at Gladio, so Somnus would actually listen to what he was saying. “Hey, Gladio. Listen, I need to work so Noct’s nanny is going to take over from his Former Majesty.”

“Is she now? And why is that?” Somnus raised an eyebrow, relieved that he no longer had to sit here. But he was curious.

* * *

 

To ensure that Cor would relax and not cause himself any harm, Ardyn and Regis were asked to leave and wait in the waiting room until Clarus came back. There, Regis was the one who gave Ardyn a lecture on safe sex and… he couldn’t fucking believe he was the one doing it. He didn’t understand how Ardyn could have been that stupid. And like Clarus, Regis didn’t believe his uncle when he said nothing like this had happened before. However, Ardyn was as shocked as everyone else and was feeling incredibly guilty.

Cor’s stomach pains, his seizure, Prompto being scared was all his fault.

He still didn’t understand how it happened, but it had, and he allowed Regis to calmly, yet sternly, give him a rollicking. What the fuck was he going to do?

The waiting room door crashed opened and Somnus stared down at his brother before screaming at him.  “WHAT THE FUCK DID YOU DO!?”

“I didn’t mean too.”

“Yes, and you said that the four previous times this has happened!”

“You said this had never happened before!” Regis shouted, finally losing his cool with Ardyn. Clarus was no better. If Ardyn could die and looks would kill, Clarus would have finally given Ardyn his eternal rest, with the glare he was giving him.

Ardyn shook his head and looked to Somnus. The Founder King looked like he was about to explode but he didn’t understand why. Ardyn didn’t understand what he was talking about. All he wanted to do was ensure that Cor was safe. But instead, he had his back up against the wall, defending his, semi-innocence to his brother, nephew and nephew’s Shield. They shouldn’t be arguing they should be focusing on getting Cor better.

“It hasn’t! I don’t have a single idea what he is on about!”

“No, you wouldn’t!” Somnus snapped and took in a breath. He rubbed his eyes and finally admitted something he had been keeping from Ardyn for a very long time. “Because you know what, sometimes I can be a bloody nice brother to you, even when you don’t deserve it. I gave you a memory-erasing potion, so you would forget.”

“What? Why would you do that?” Ardyn’s entire body twitched. Oh, that boy was getting skinned when this was all over!

“Because you couldn’t handle the guilt. Ardyn, you were becoming insane and uncontrollable, you started hurting people again. And whenever I told you to stop and calm down, you didn’t listen to me. I had to give it to you because of what happened afterwards, and unfortunately, none of them could be helped. We didn’t have the medicine or the equipment to help them.”

Somnus’s words turned to sorrow as he said the last part and all three of them felt dread in their stomachs. The Founder King hadn’t said the words yet. But they were all thinking it and that couldn’t happen. No, they wouldn’t let that happen to Cor.

“Grandfather… please don’t say what I think you are going to.”

Somnus didn’t listen to Regis’s plea and he stared Ardyn in the face. “They all died.”

Because Somnus was the only one who had a single idea of what was going on, he had to explain to all of them what had happened in the past. The first one was a Lucian woman who was burnt at the stake by scared civilians. All of them were terrified that she would produce more daemons and would infect everyone with her daemon spawn. The second was a Tenebrae woman who died because of an infection after giving birth. She wasn’t infected by the starscourge, but because everyone, at the time, lacked the knowledge on bacterial infections, and how to treat it, she passed away. The daemon was destroyed by Somnus as Ardyn, being in such a state, couldn’t bring himself to do it. The last two were both men. For the first one, the first instinct was to simply cut it out of him. It was the most sensible option as they had no idea how it was going to get out.  However, their decision proved fatal. The daemon felt provoked and killed the man on it’s way out. That time Ardyn disposed of it but the daemons grew offended by his actions and started to toy with his mind. Forcing Somnus, for the third time, to slip a memory-erasing potion into his wine. The fourth time was no better. The daemon exited through the same way it had been planted. However, because they lacked the equipment and medicine, the man ended up bleeding out and dying within a few hours of giving birth. What made matters worse was that, Ardyn had tried desperately to save the man. And because he failed, Somnus nearly put Ardyn back on Angelguard so he couldn’t hurt anyone. Luckily, the King at the time convinced him to just erase his memory instead.

And before Ardyn screamed at Somnus and demanded why he didn’t pick up on what was happening to Cor, Somnus told him that the tell-tale signs had all been unique to the individual. With the first woman, she was tired constantly. The second woman just wanted to go running and eat rabbit. The first man just complained about headaches and the second didn’t feel a thing until his stomach began to swell.

And in all cases, other then the first, the host carried the daemon for a week before it forced its way out. Which meant they had until tomorrow to think of a way to remove the daemon without hurting Cor.

Ardyn didn’t know what to do. However, he was certain on one thing. He was not going to let Cor die. He was not going to upset Prompto like that. This was his fault and he was going to do everything in his power to save him.  

“Cor’s not going to die. I won’t let that happen.”

“You said that about the last one.” Somnus said in sympathy 

“Well, I don’t remember it do I? Because YOU tampered with my memories!” Ardyn started to get aggressive again.  Somnus literally killed his relationship with Aera, and because Somnus decided he knew best, his actions had the potential to kill Cor. He wasn’t letting it happen again. His brother was not destroying another one of his relationships. And if anything happened, Ardyn was going to place half the blame on his little brother. 

“What else could I do! You were on the verge of breaking point. I was helping you.” Somnus raised his voice.

“How has any of this helped my husband! If I remembered I might be able to think of a way to help him! But no you took it upon yourself to control me. Like you always do! So, let’s be done with it. Activate Article 5 and put me back on that island! Because if he dies Somnus… Angelguard is the only thing that will stop me from putting you through the worst torture that anyone on this rock could possibly imagine!”

The room then lit up in a blue haze and Ardyn and Somnus were forced to step away from each other as they both had a sword pointed directly at their hearts. The brothers looked around and noticed that they were encased in a dome of blue swords and weapons, all pointing inwards at them. Ardyn growled at Somnus, automatically thinking he had done this. But when he saw the confusion on his brother’s face he stopped. Ardyn and Somnus turned to face the only other person who was capable of doing this. And he was not happy.

The King roared at the pair, pointing to them as he addressed them. “ENOUGH! You are not going back to Angelguard because Cor isn’t dying. And you are going to tell Doctor Aeris exactly what we should do.”

Regis didn’t lower his weapons.

Somnus didn’t want to give up hope. He liked Cor and he could only imagine the chaos that would happen if the Marshal died. Ardyn would do exactly what he was supposed to do and destroy everything. But they had to be realistic. He had to make Ardyn see there was a high possibility that Cor wouldn’t make it.

“No one has survived before.”

“He will. He fought your Shield and lived. He is married to the Accused and has adopted a part daemon baby. If anyone can live, it’s him.” Clarus said, standing behind Regis.

“He will live Grandfather because we are all going to work together to help him. Clearly, cutting him open isn’t an option as it will kill him on the spot. Letting it get out naturally is the best cause of action. We now have Phoenix downs, elixir’s, penicillin. We will use everything and anything we have at our disposal to ensure he pulls through.”

“Regis, I do think we are forgetting one thing though. I know Cor will pull through, but what happens if the daemon infects him, or us after it has been born?” Clarus asked.

When that thing came out, it wasn’t only a danger to Cor but to the rest of Insomnia. They had to be careful.

Ardyn beat Regis to that answer. “It won’t. It won’t kill it’s host. And to ensure no one else is infected, I will just have to be there to put the thing out of its misery.”

Regis finally put all his weapons away, which allowed Ardyn and Somnus to step away from each other. However, Somnus’s personal space was soon invaded by Regis. He went right up to him and spoke words of venom at him.

“There. Sorted. Grandfather, if Cor does die, I am not saying he will Ardyn, I am only saying if. Because of your stupidity and lack of faith in your brother, he won’t be the one returning to Angelguard. It will be you. Do I make myself clear?”

“Yes, your Majesty.”  

 “Good.”


	4. Chapter 4

After Regis’s threat, Regis, Clarus, and Somnus left Ardyn with Cor to tell him what was going to happen. And what might potentially happen if they didn’t act fast. Cor understood and tried his best to reassure Ardyn that, that wasn’t going to happen. But Ardyn could not shake off the guilt. Cor was hurting because of him and… no. He hated it.

Ardyn gripped on to Cor’s hand and pleaded for his forgiveness, even though he didn’t have to. “My Marshal I am so sorry. I honestly didn’t mean too.”

“I know you didn’t. And I didn’t mean to snap at you.” Cor apologised squeezing his hand back.

The Marshal had his free hand on his aching stomach to try his best to ease the pain, as the painkillers were beginning to wear off. His stomach was at least 5 times bigger than normal and he felt exhausted. He just wanted it out. He wanted it gone. All of this scared him. Cor hadn’t been scared many times in his life. He probably could count the number of times on one hand, but having a daemon growing inside him was just terrifying. It had grown so quickly with no signs of stopping. He could feel it moving around and Cor was surprised that it hadn’t ripped into his vital organs yet. Apparently, the daemon had cocooned itself in a sack of its own making and that was the only thing that was preventing it from tearing him apart from the inside out. Also, Cor was healthy. Very healthy. It had become apparent that this daemon wanted to keep Cor alive. Like a parasite, it needed it’s host to function properly. And if the Marshal was healthy, it only meant that this daemon was going to be a tough bugger to kill. Ardyn said that he wouldn’t allow it to harm anyone. This was beyond fucked up. But Cor didn’t fully blame Ardyn for this. It wasn’t his fault that he didn’t know that this was possible and in all fairness… Cor was partly to blame. However, passing the blame around wasn’t the important thing. However, getting Ardyn to listen to him was. Cor didn’t know if Ardyn was going to, not with the next sentence that left his mouth.

“I think you have every right to snap at me. Like I have a right to snap Somnus’s neck.”

“No. He was only doing what he thought was right.”

“At what cost though? The price of his ‘helpful’ actions could cost you your life.”

 “Ardyn please… The past really doesn’t matter. What matters is Prompto, and we need to talk about him.

“You need not worry. He is perfectly alright.” Ardyn reassured him running his other hand through Cor’s short hair.

He wasn’t allowed to be stressed at the moment. If that thing felt provoked in anyway Cor wasn’t going to make it. Their son was in the capable hands of Noct’s nanny and Monica and Dustin were dealing with the guard. He had no reason to threat.  

“That’s not what I mean.” Cor shook his head before resting his forehead against Ardyn’s. Ardyn was not going to want to talk about this but they had too. “Look, I am going to be fine. But if I am not you can’t lose your shit.”

“Cor do not say things like that.” Ardyn whimpered, placing more pressure against Cor’s head.

“Listen to me. I need you to promise me that if the worst comes to the worst, you will be there for Prom. He will need you. You can lose your shit when he’s 18 and not before then, do you understand me Ass Hat?”

Cor was right. Of course, Cor was right. No matter how tough this was going to be, Ardyn needed to be there for Prompto. Cor was everything to their son and if Cor suddenly wasn’t going to be there anymore it would break his little heart. He was only 3 for Bahamut sake, he shouldn’t be dealing with this. No child should ever lose their parent at such a young age. Ardyn felt even more sorry for Noct now. The poor tike lost his mother last year and it wasn’t fair that he could also lose his uncle Cor too.

Ardyn kissed Cor, praying that it wouldn’t be their last. He wasn’t ready to even think about letting him go yet. Let alone the thought of raising Prom by himself. No. That wasn’t going to happen. Cor was going to be fine.

He pulled away from him and nodded slowly. “Okay. I promise to be there for him. But you’re going to be there too.”

“I know. I know. I understand this is hard but if anything does happen, I want to say goodbye to him. Please… go get our son.”

* * *

 

“…you are selfish, arrogant, nasty and obnoxious!”

Regis screamed at Somnus from the privacy of his quarters. However, the guard and glaive that were posted outside the rooms, could hear every word that Regis had been screaming at the Founder King for the past half an hour. They silently decided not to mention what they had heard to anyone else. If the King was that angry at his immortal Grandfather, it was for the best that the contents of their ‘conversation’ remained private. That’s if they wanted to keep their jobs.

Somnus rolled his eyes and tapped his foot on the ground, appearing very uninterested about their argument. “Shouting at me isn’t going to help.”

“DO I LOOK LIKE I CARE!” Regis roared. Regis couldn’t understand it. Somnus could be the kindest person on this planet when it suited him. And it seemed like today his own family wasn’t suiting him. He was slowly beginning to understand why there was so much resentment and hate between his Grandfather and his Uncle. Not to mention that this was Cor they were on about. Somnus was well aware that they were having sex, why didn’t he just warn Ardyn about this?! “One of my best friend’s life is on the line here! YOUR brother-in-law’s life! And not once did you ever think to mention that this could happen! How can you possibly be that selfish! You tell me often that you care for Ardyn but knowing this… I am starting to doubt you even have the ability to care at all!”

“If I told him he would have lost it.” Somnus stated, defending his actions, still refusing to admit he was in the wrong. Which only made Regis more furious.

“You do not give Ardyn enough credit. You should know him better than anyone else, and even I know he would have been able to handle this information. Cor wouldn’t be in danger if you just told him!”

“No Regis you don’t! Everyone needs to stop pretending that Ardyn isn’t dangerous! He IS dangerous. Just because in your lifetime, he hasn’t caused mass destruction, doesn’t mean he isn’t capable of it!”

Somnus had seen cities collapse at the hands of his brother. He had seen daemons march in unison, following Ardyn’s every command. He witnessed people being ripped to shreds by Ardyn because he had lost control of his emotions! Somnus wasn’t any better with how he dealt with the scourge but Ardyn had the potential to be unstoppable. And thankfully for the past 500 years, Ardyn hadn’t done anything that inhumane. And Somnus thought if Ardyn knew what he had done to those four people, without meaning too, it would throw him into an endless loop of internal torture. He just didn’t want Regis, Cor, Noctis or Prompto to witness that.

Regis wasn’t seeing his side. All he was seeing was a selfish man who couldn’t be asked to help or think about his older brother. Also, Somnus’s logic was flawed and the King shouted back at the Former King to make him aware of it. 

“You don’t think he will if Cor doesn’t make it! If people get hurt Somnus this is all your fault! No one else’s! YOURS!”

“I know!”

“No, you clearly don’t! You don’t care about anyone else apart from yourself!”

“That’s not true. I care about you. I care about Noctis, Prom, Cor, and Ardyn! You’re my family.” Somnus said feeling a little hurt by his grandson’s statement.

Of course, he cared. That was why he didn’t say anything. He would never want to see any of them hurt in any way and he did feel responsible for what was happening. Maybe he should have done things a little differently, but it didn’t mean he cared any less. He wasn’t good at expressing how he felt, he knew that, but still, that didn’t mean he didn’t love them. And it didn’t mean he wouldn’t go to the ends of the earth to protect them. 

“Then start acting like it. Because you have a lot of making up to do, and you should start by supporting your brother!” Regis growled, pointing in the direction of the exit to tell Somnus to get a fucking move on.

* * *

 

Prompto sat quietly in the corner waiting for his dada to return. Prompto was worried and scared, Ardyn hadn’t been up in a while and his daddy was still being looked after by the doctors. He just wanted to know if they were safe. He gripped on to Charlie the Chocobo and held it tight to his chest. His parents brought it for him on his second day in Insomnia. He didn’t obviously remember it, but whenever he held his toy close it comforted him. It felt like his daddy and dada were there with him.

Prompto felt someone hug him from behind and he looked around to see that Noctis had latched on to him.

Noctis gave his best friend a small smile. He didn’t know what was going on, none of the boys did, but he didn’t like seeing Prom sad. “Hey Prom, it’s okay. Uncle Cor will be fine.”

“But everyone seems so scared.” Prompto pouted, masking his worry.

Gladio then plunked himself in front of the blonde and proudly said. “Uncle Cor is never scared. Don’t worry short stuff.”

“Yeah, listen to Gladio.” Noctis agreed, letting go of Prom to stand in front of him, beside Gladio.

“Let’s take our minds off of it. How about we play hide and seek?”

“Sure. Come on Prom.” Noctis exchanged a hand for him to take.

Prompto didn’t want to play hide and seek. He didn’t really want to do anything but be with his dads. Likewise, he knew how hard Noct and Gladio were trying to make him feel better. And he didn’t want to upset either of them. And they were right; his daddy was never scared. He was going to be okay. Plus, his dada would never let anything bad happen to him. Maybe he should play hide and seek and push on. That way he could be brave, just like his dads.  

Prompto nodded and took Noct’s hand so he could pull him up.

“Okay… DADA!” Prompto beamed as he ran towards Ardyn, who had just entered the room.  

“Sunbeam!” Ardyn smiled and picked him up when he reached him. He poked Prom on the nose and held him close. “Right, mister I am sorry that daddy and I haven’t been around much.”

“It’s okay.” Prompto smiled nuzzling into Ardyn’s chest.

Now Prompto felt less worried. But he could sense his dada wasn’t himself. He seemed less lively than usual. Had something happened? Upon realising this, he slumped further into Ardyn’s hold and hugged his Chocobo again. Ardyn let out a sigh and rubbed his son’s back. He didn’t want to take Prompto down to see Cor because he didn’t want to worry him further. However, this could be the last time the pair would be able to see each other… And he had an inkling Prompto could sense that something was wrong. Ardyn just had to try his best to soothe his worries.

Which had now become difficult as little Noctis began holding onto his legs to get his attention.

“Hey, Uncle Ardyn! Is Grandpa coming back soon?”

Ardyn didn’t sneer. It wasn’t Noct’s fault Somnus had pissed him off. He smiled and shook his head at the prince. “Hello, Noct. And no, he is busy. I can’t stay long I am taking Prom to see Uncle Cor for a bit.”

“Ah, we were gunna play hide and seek.” Noctis whined letting go of Ardyn’s leg. Causing Ardyn to roll his eyes, Noctis was very spoiled sometimes.

Gladio hit Noctis on the back and laughed. “We can do that when he comes back. Stop being such a princess.”

“I’m a boy!”

The boys started to argue and Noct’s nanny hurried over quickly to sort out the little squabble. Ardyn shook his head and held Prompto close to him. “Let’s leave them to it.”

* * *

 

Ardyn warned Prompto that Cor was feeling rather rotten and that Prompto was not to worry and that he shouldn’t be scared of how Cor looked. Because they knew what was wrong and they were sorting it out to get him all better. Prompto nodded and trusted what his dada told him. But when Prompto saw Cor, he immediately burst into tears and reached out for him to take him.

Cor shuffled up a bit as Ardyn sat Prompto next to him on the bed, before returning to his seat beside it. Cor wrapped his arm around Prom, and Ardyn held on to the boy’s hand to try and ease his sobs. After a few moments Prom calmed down and he did not want to move from his spot on the bed. 

Cor kissed Prom on the forehead and gave him a gentle smile. “Don’t be worried Prom, in a couple of days time, I’ll be home.”

“Sunbeam, everything will be alright. We promise.” Ardyn semi-lied.

He didn’t know what the outcome was going to be, it was all wishful thinking. And saying that sentence was to reassure himself as much as it was to comfort their son. He was not going to allow Prompto to lose his dad. And he was not losing his husband.   

Prompto sniffed and gripped Cor’s arm. “Daddy. Please don’t leave me.”

Hearing that broke both Cor’s and Ardyn’s heart. Cor pulled Prompto closer to him and fought back tears. “I am not going too. I promise.”

“I don’t want you to go. I need you to stay, so you can protect me.”

“Prom. I promise I will stay.”

“Sunbeam, daddy is going to be okay. I promise I will do everything I can to ensure that. You don’t need to cry.” Ardyn was doing exactly the same thing as Cor, holding all his sadden emotions back. He had seen so many of his nephews and nieces lose their parents over the years. He sympathised with them. He didn’t remember the pain of losing his own, so he never understood the full extent of the hurt that they went through. But hearing his baby boy say that… it made him feel powerless and hurt. And he just wanted to make it better, but he couldn’t. Not until that daemon was out of Cor he couldn’t.

“Come on, Prom no more crying. How about I read you a story.” Cor offered.

Prom nodded slowly and Ardyn whipped a storybook out of his armiger and handed it to Cor. Prompto help Cor turned the pages of the book as Ardyn made funny voices. Just before everything kicked off they sat down together and tried to make this as happy as they possibly could.

After a couple of hours, Cor was due more painkillers and Ardyn took Prompto back upstairs with Noctis and Gladio. Clarus and Regis were there tending to their boys, and they were more than happy to look after Prom while Ardyn went to have a well-needed chat with Somnus.

What was unexpected about their interaction was not once was a voice raised. Not once was a sword drawn and for once Somnus did not argue with Ardyn. He allowed his older brother to do all the talking and everything that came out of his mouth was horrible yet justified. Ardyn spoke calmly, collectively and slowly and told him exactly what was going to happen if he lost Cor. He wasn’t going to torture him. He wasn’t going to kill him, he was just going to take Prompto out of Insomnia and leave. And Somnus was never ever going to be allowed anywhere near, or see, Prompto again. And that any love Ardyn had left for his brother would vanish, and it would become irretrievable.  

Somnus only agreed with him and apologised once Ardyn had finished speaking.

But the Accused didn’t acknowledge his apology and went back downstairs to see his husband.

* * *

 

“It’s hurting again.” Cor groaned. It hadn’t stopped hurting but it had become more painful and the bloody thing wouldn’t stop jiggling about.

“Where’s the nurse.” Ardyn let out a breath of frustration looking towards the door. He would have stood up and left but Cor squeezed his hand and refused to let him leave.

“I can’t have any more painkillers.”

“There has got to be something we can do to ease the pain.”

Ardyn used to be a healer. He thought he could have at least thought up one ancient remedy to sooth Cor’s discomfort. But thanks to Somnus he was none the wiser as of what to do. He stared at his husband stomach and let out a small growl. He hated that thing growing inside of him. He wanted to slaughter it and make sure it suffered as much as Cor was, and was going too. How dare it be allowed to stay in there. Then an idea came to mind. Ardyn could control daemons. So maybe he could control this one…

He raised his hand and rested it on Cor’s stomach.  

“What are you doing?” Cor asked, exhausted from the pain.

“Just relax, my love.”

Ardyn felt around for the daemon and when he got the majority of it in his palm he slowly began to rub it. Cor felt himself begin to relax as the pain lessened and the daemon stopped moving. He hadn’t felt so comfortable and relaxed in nearly a weak. He wanted to kiss Ardyn for doing this. But he thought if he made any sudden movements the daemon would go back to being a little shit. Instead, he held on to Ardyn’s forearm and rubbed it gently to say thank you. Ardyn smiled and continued to rub his stomach.

“Don’t you dare get attached to it.” Cor joked as he looked down at his stomach.

“I have you and Prom, I don’t want to get attached to anything else. At least you’re not in severe pain.” 

Cor nodded. That was something. Now he felt like he could go to sleep without waking up in tremendous pain. However, there was something he needed to clear up with Ardyn before he did go to sleep.

“Ardyn, once this is all over, I am never having sex with you again.”

“At the moment, I completely agree with that statement.”  

“How’s Regis and Clarus?” Cor asked, moving his hand from Ardyn’s arm to his auburn hair.

Ardyn sighed. “A little worse for wear. They are very concerned about you. They have missed a few meetings and now the council has reorganised the budget meeting to now. I told them to send Somnus, but they aren’t very trusting of him at the moment.”

“This isn’t Somnus’s fault.” Cor shook his head. No matter what happened Cor did not want Ardyn to hate Somnus. Ardyn was going to need him if he died. No matter how Somnus acted towards Ardyn, Cor knew how much he cared for him. The Founder King would ask Cor on a daily basis how Ardyn was. And more often then not, the question was genuine.

However, Ardyn was too bitter and angry at Somnus to see that at the moment. “No, but he shouldn’t have erased my memory.”

“Well we’re not exactly careful, are we? If we are being honest this probably would have happened if you knew and I know what you are like when you get upset. Ardyn, Somnus was doing you a fucking favour in erasing it.”

“Please don’t take his side.” Ardyn said bluntly.

“I’m not. But if you were in his position, what would you have done?”

Ardyn hadn’t thought about that… Not even Regis or Clarus had thought about that. Maybe he had been a tad harsh…

“Why do you have to make sense?”

“Cause I’m always right.” Cor smiled but he couldn’t hold it for long. Suddenly a sharp shooting pain surged through the lower half of his body, forcing Cor to grip his stomach. “OW!”

“Cor! Darling what’s wrong?!” Ardyn started to panic. He let go of Cor’s stomach and grabbed on to his arms instead so he was looking at him.

“I don’t know. AHHHH!!” Cor started to scream and lean over in agony.

“It’s alright! It’s okay.” Ardyn pressed the buzzer to alert the doctors. He wasn’t going to leave Cor now, not when he was screaming in pain. He needed to be here because he had a feeling as to what was happening. That daemon was forcing it’s way out of Cor. To ensure that the doctors would hurry up he shrieked so that anyone outside the room could hear him. “CAN SOMEONE GET IN HERE!!! I’m not leaving you alright. I promise I am not going anywhere.”

Cor then felt something wet trickle out of him. He quickly removed the blanket off himself to discover he was sitting in a pool of black and red liquid. Cor shot his head up at Ardyn and screamed louder than before.

“JUST GET THIS FUCKING THING OUT OF ME!!!”


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you so much to everyone who has read this fic, commented and left kudos. Really means a lot. 
> 
> I hope you enjoy the last chapter :)

Cor’s breathing was extremely heavy as he continued to exhale in and out. The pain was already becoming unbearable and to cope he locked Ardyn’s hand, with his own in an iron grip. He fought back a scream of complete agony as the pain continued to shoot through the lower half of his body. Ardyn was trying his hardest to keep Cor calm and began to encourage him to take in deep and controlled breaths. Ardyn kept looking towards the door. He had pressed the buzzer a minute ago and no one had come through yet. Getting very impatient, and a little panicked, he pressed the buzzer repeatedly to get someone’s attention. Anyone’s attention.  

The Doctor’s weren’t coming, which caused Cor to get more agitated. He ground his teeth together and held back a series of grunts as he pulled Ardyn’s hand closer to his body.

“Ardyn! Don’t you dare leave me!”

Ardyn wrapped his arm around Cor’s head and cradled him gently while Cor continued to crush his hand. “I won’t! I am going to be here every step of the way my darling. I know you’re scared, I’m scared too. Just breathe.”

“It hurts…”

“You’ll be alright, My Marshal. I promise everything will be alright.”

Ardyn looked to the door and still no one was coming. The buzzer was still blaring, and he felt Cor’s grip get tighter and tighter with every second that passed. Cor’s arm snaked, and locked, around Ardyn’s and he screamed in pain. Ardyn felt himself start to get angry at the doctors. If they couldn’t come when called how in the name of Shiva where they meant to help Cor?

Ardyn knew he had to remain calm. Cor was in enough distress as it was, without him getting angry. But he couldn’t help himself. He was not losing the Marshal because he screwed up. He would fucking deliver the monster himself if they didn’t hurry up, and he may need to push Regis to remove some of the doctor’s working here. Just as Ardyn was about to press the buzzer again, two minutes after he had initially pressed it, the door flew open. Doctor Aeris rushed in with two other doctors and a few nurses following her.

“ABOUT TIME!” Ardyn raised his voice, eyes beginning to glow yellow.

Doctor Aeris reached Cor’s side and did her best to ignore the enraged immortal royal. She composed her words and used the calmest tone she could. “I am so sorry for the delay. Marshal Leonis don’t worry. We are going to do everything we can to help you and make this as comfortable as possible.”

“Don’t tell me! Just fucking help me!” Cor screamed.

“Right. Okay, Marshal, I need your full attention. We need to raise you up a bit. This is to ensure the daemon has a clear way out. We are going to place pillows under the lower half of your back. We have spoken to his Former Majesty and he has suggested that this is the best way to help you and make you as comfortable as possible. Your Grace, could you gently lift him up please?” Doctor Aeris said, prompting Ardyn to let go of Cor’s hand and head.

He placed both of his hands on either side of Cor’s face and got him to take in more deep breaths before he spoke to him. 

“Cor, look at me. You need to trust in what they are doing. Okay? Okay.” Cor nodded. Getting the answer he needed, Ardyn placed one arm under his knees and the other firmly around his back. In a soft whisper, he warned Cor of what was sure to come. “I’m sorry my love, but this is probably going to hurt, a lot.”

Ardyn slowly lifted Cor off the bed and the Marshal wrapped his arms around his neck. Ardyn could feel Cor’s heart beat getting faster. He could feel the sweat dripping from him and Ardyn held him closer as he screamed into his chest. Ardyn couldn’t put him down. The nurses and doctor’s had to dispose of the black and red-stained sheets to put some fresh ones down. Ardyn felt it was completely unnecessary as Cor was only going to ruin the new ones as well, but the doctor’s informed him it was to reduce the chances of Cor getting an infection. Once that was out of the way, they positioned the pillows on the bed so that Cor’s lower half would be risen up when Ardyn put him back down.

“I’ve got you. I’ve got you.” Ardyn said comfortingly as Cor started to cry due to the burning pain.

“Set him down carefully.” Doctor Aeris ordered. Ardyn swiftly obeyed and placed him down gently, trying his hardest not to cause him anymore discomfort. Once he was on the bed Doctor Aeris lightly took hold of the Marshal’s arm to get his attention. “Now Marshal, I know this is going to be tough and very painful. We can’t give you any more pain relief, so you are just going to have to push on. When you feel you need to push, you are going to have to do it.”

Cor shook his head, desperately feeling around for Ardyn’s hand. “It hurts too much.”

“I know but that daemon can’t stay in there any longer. You have too.” Doctor Aeris said, trying to encourage him to help himself.

“HOW ABOUT YOU TRY DOING THIS!”

Cor was petrified. The pain was causing him to go light headed and the amount of people in the room was starting to suffocate him. The pain had started to burn, and he could feel the daemon start to move downwards. Tears of pain were flowing from his eyes and all he could do was hold Ardyn’s hand as he rode through another shockwave of agonising torment.

Ardyn ran his hand through Cor’s sweaty hair and tried to soothe his pain with words. “Cor, relax. She is only trying to help.”

“I hate this!” Cor cried, no longer caring for his dignity or reputation. 

“So, do I. But you have to do this.”

“I can’t.”

Ardyn’s voice turned sterner and he forced Cor to look at him dead in the eye. “Yes, you can. You’re Cor the Immortal remember? You can do almost anything, and you are doing this.”

“SHUT UP ARDYN! I CAN’T!”

“Think about Prompto he needs you to do this. You have to do this Marshal Leonis. And that’s an order!”

Cor gulped at hearing his son’s name. He had to do this for Prom. For Prompto.

Cor nodded and before he even realised what he was doing, his body was already automatically pushing the daemon through. The pain only increased when he did this, and he continued to strain his lungs by screaming. Ardyn did what he could to calm him down and keep encouraging him to push when he thought he could. Doctor Aeris was constantly by Cor’s side, whilst ordering her team around her, to either: get fresh water for the Marshal’s forehead, get a drip ready if they needed it to perform a blood transfusion, prepare the next room in case he needed surgery, ensure that they had at least two phoenix downs in case they needed to use them.  

Cor started to lose focus and he had no idea what was going on around him. He continued to push when he felt he needed too and the only thing he was certain of was that Ardyn had not let go of his hand. He could hear his own screams and he could feel the vile creature begin to burrow its way into his rectum in order to escape. He continued to cry, scream and murder Ardyn’s hand as he felt blood begin to pour out of him. He gasped when he felt the thing force it’s way to his entrance and he screamed louder, in fear, when he could feel it start to pulse inside his aching body.

Ardyn wiped his hand across his forehead as Doctor Aeris took a look to see how things were progressing. She nodded. She was worried at the amount of blood that was leaking out of the Marshal and she could see the bulge that had formed at Cor’s entrance.

“Excellent, Marshal Leonis you are doing really well.” She commented and before she could tell Cor to give one final big push the door’s burst open.

“Ardyn!” Somnus called for his brother as he rushed in. When he saw that they hadn’t delivered the daemon yet, a wave of relief hit him.

“Somnus get the fuck out!” Ardyn roared at his brother, gripping on to Cor’s hand to reassure him that he was still there.

A nurse approached Somnus and tried to respectfully ask him to leave. “Your Former Majesty, I am going to have to-”

“Ardyn will you just listen to me! It’s a daemon! Unless you want someone to get infected, they can’t be the one who delivers it!”

Ardyn’s eyes met Somnus’s and he realised what he meant. The daemon had to keep Cor alive in order to get out so he was going to be fine. But everyone else in the room was going to look like sausage meat the moment it took its first breath of fresh air. 

“Fuck! Move over!” Ardyn said letting go of Cor’s hand. He pushed Doctor Aeris out of the way and gently placed his hands-on Cor’s knees to tell him he hadn’t gone anywhere.

“Ardyn!” Cor called out, fighting the urge to push.

“Darling it’s alright I swear.” Ardyn said in a poorly convincing voice. He knew he had to be quick in order to stop this daemon from hurting anyone. Ardyn’s worries only strengthened when he felt Cor stiffen up. Ardyn knew that Cor was panicking more than before because he no longer had him by his side. Ardyn quickly turned to his brother. “Somnus get your arse over here and look after Cor.”

Somnus warped passed the doctors and nurses and gripped his brother-in-law’s hand, and soon regretted it. It felt like Cor had broken all the bones in his hand with one squeeze.

“ARDYN JUST GET IT OUT OF ME!” Cor screamed gripping on to the blood-stained bed with his other hand.

“Okay. Darling this will hurt. When I say now, you need to push. Alright?”

“HURRY UP!”

“Now!”

Cor pushed and shrieked, as hard and as loud, as he could. The smell of blood and rotting flesh soon filled the air as the blackish purple creature clawed it’s way out. Everyone, apart from Ardyn and Somnus moved back in fear, when the thing let out a howl, and clawed at the bed, upon seeing Ardyn. Ardyn let out an inhuman growl as he grabbed the daemon and squeezed the life out of it. He moved himself to the corner of the room and absorbed the thing into his body. As punishment for doing that, he felt the scourge pour out of his face. He had to turn away from Cor, he never liked it when he saw him get like this and he remained with his back turned to his husband as he continued to get rid of the last parts of the newly born daemon. He enjoyed killing that thing. After everything, it had put both his husband and son through.

After a few moments, the daemon was gone and Ardyn had regained control of himself, he turned to see if Cor was okay.

Cor and his bed were no longer there. All of the doctor’s and nurses had left as well. Panic latched itself onto Ardyn’s heart, he made for the door, but he was halted by a wall of blue magic blocking the exit. Ardyn aggressively punched the wall in a burst of uncontrollable emotions. He knew he wouldn’t be able to take it down. Only his little brother was going to be able to do that and with the current state he was in, Somnus wasn’t going to. Not for a little while.  

“There isn’t any more you can do.” Somnus said from behind him.

“Where…” 

“Next door. He has lost a lot of blood. They think they need to perform surgery and maybe give Cor a blood transfusion. I understand that this is difficult for you, but you shouldn’t worry yourself too much brother. You did everything you could. Cor will be alright.”

Ardyn let out a sigh, still keeping his focus on the blue wall. His heart began to sink, and for the first time in the past 200 years he felt truly and utterly helpless. Somnus was right, there wasn’t anymore he could possibly do for Cor. All he could do now was sit and wait, and prepare for whatever was going to happen next. Ardyn shook his head, Cor was going to make it. He always made it, no matter the cost.  

Ardyn turned around to Somnus who was giving him a sympathetic smile. “Somnus thank you, for coming to help. I really, really do appreciate it.”

“Don’t mention it. I am not always selfish.”

“I know.”

* * *

 

From there Somnus took Ardyn to see Regis and Clarus so that they were aware of exactly what had taken place.

Regis started to freak out and demand that they were updated regularly on Cor’s current condition. The King didn’t care if he had another three meetings that needed to be held today, he was not going to any of them until he was certain that Cor was alright. Clarus was much the same and snapped at anyone who tried to bother Regis with any matter that did not involve the Prince or the Marshal. Ardyn mostly sat in silence during the long wait. And he point blanked refused to drink anything until he knew Cor was safe. He may have been more then grateful to Somnus, and he felt like he was in debt to him. But Ardyn was not in any position to trust his brother not to erase his memory again. Somnus didn’t blame him and he didn’t even try to defend himself either.

After a couple of hours, they were informed that Cor had come out of surgery, he wasn’t infected with the scourge and they were currently giving him a blood transfusion. Cor wasn’t stable yet, but it allowed all four men to relax a little. Because of how long and hard the day had been Somnus offered to remain in the waiting room while the rest of them attended to their children. Ardyn didn’t want to leave, but he knew that Prompto was more then likely very upset and worried. Ardyn raced up to the nursery and held Prom close as soon as he was in his arms. It would be a few hours until they were told that the Marshal was stable and that he could have visitors.

When they were allowed to go and see him Ardyn and Prom were the first ones in. Prompto sat next to Cor and cuddled up beside him, while Ardyn held on to Cor’s hand and just smiled at him.

“You two need to stop worrying. I am okay.” Cor reassured him in a weakened voice, ruffling Prom’s hair whilst returning the smile to his husband.   

“Good.” Prompto smiled snuggling up closer to Cor.

“I knew you would be, darling. I am relieved and very grateful that you are. Prom and I, just want to make sure you remain that way, right Sunbeam?”

“Yep. You can even hug my Chocobo while you sleep tonight.”

Cor kissed the top of Prom’s head. His son was too goddamned cute. “Thank you Prom. I think I might need a sleep right about now.”

* * *

 

The next evening, after Cor had got plenty of rest, Regis and Clarus came to visit him. The entire time Cor was trying his hardest to convince them and Ardyn that he was alright. Very sore, but fine.

“I will be fine in three days.” Cor rolled his eyes.

He had been in the hospital, bed bound, for 5 days now and he was itching to get back to work. He hated sitting around doing nothing. He would even do the bloody paperwork if it meant he could go back into work.  

Regis shook his head. “I do not think so.”

“I am deactivating your card as soon as your fit to go home. You are not returning for at least four weeks.” Clarus stated leaning up against the wall, next to Regis’s chair.

“Why?” Cor whined, stroking Prompto’s hair as he slept beside him.

This was probably the only thing he was enjoying about having all this time off. For he could just sit and be with his son and husband. Ardyn was standing beside his bed running his fingers on Cor’s sculp helping him relax. For once Cor didn’t care that Ardyn was being openly affectionate towards him with someone else in the same room as them. With everything that had been going on, he didn’t really have time to feel uncomfortable with Ardyn fussing over him. Now that it was all over, he was just grateful that he was here at all. Today it didn’t cause him any bother.

“Because you need to regain your strength.” Clarus continued.

“Clarus is right. We don’t want you to get an infection not after all of this.”  

Cor pouted and looked up to Ardyn to get his support.

Ardyn laughed. Like hell was he going to back Cor up on this one. “Don’t look at me for help. I want you off for at least two months.”

“I’ve had worse then this.”

“Don’t we know it.” Clarus rolled his eyes. There had been too many times where Cor had nearly (got himself killed) died. He was about to waste his breath, yet again, and tell him off for scaring him and Regis half to death for the third time this year, but his pointless lecturing was put on hold when his phone started to ring. He looked at the caller and made his way for the door to answer the call. “Sorry, I will be back in a minute.”

“My Marshal just relax. Maybe you should follow what Prom is doing and get some more sleep.” Ardyn offered, still stroking his hair.

“No. I want to sit with him for a bit longer.” Cor smiled looking down at Prom.

Regis let go a soft smile. It was very strange to see Cor behaving like this. But the King did not point it out. Cor would surely try to rip his head off if he did. Instead, he leant back in his chair and enforced what Ardyn had just said. “I think we all need to relax for a while. And you two, please don’t force me to give you a lecture on safe sex. I do not want a repeat of this.”

“No need to worry, Reggie. This is never happening again. And because Somnus hasn’t tampered with my brain, I will make sure it never does.”

“Not this again. I told you not to blame him.” Cor grumbled.

“I don’t blame him. I would just like my memory intact as all.” Ardyn smiled and decided just to agree with Cor. He didn’t need him getting stressed.

Clarus walked back into the room and walked over to Ardyn. He then placed the phone out in front of him and handed it to Ardyn. “It’s for you.”  

Ardyn gave him a weird glare and was rather hesitant to take the phone. He stopped stroking Cor’s hair and moved away from the bed slightly. The only reason why he did that was because dread started to seep into his stomach. Because curiosity always seemed to get the better of him, he placed the phone to his ear. His face loosened when he realised who was on the other end. “Hello? …. Ah, Mr. Sophiar how can I help you?”

“What did you two do?” Cor questioned the pair, annoyance clearly present in his voice.

The King and Shield just shrugged their shoulders and gave Cor a sheepish smile. Cor knew they called Cid because they were very worried, and they didn’t know if Cor was going to make it or not, but did they have to call Cid? Couldn’t they have told Wesk instead and leave Cid until last. The man loathed Ardyn. He loathed him even more then Ardyn hated Somnus. This was not going to be a good conversation.

Cor turned his attention back to Ardyn, who now had the phone away from his ear, tapping his fingers against the wall, waiting for Cid to stop shouting at him.

“I told you he never liked me.” Ardyn said bluntly before returning the phone to his ear. “Yes, yes. Now what was the deal again, if I ever hurt Cor? Was it getting beaten to death with a 10 foot pole, or turned into car fuel? …. Fuel? …. Sounds great to me. See you soon. Bye now.” Ardyn quickly hung up and threw the phone at Clarus before it rang again. “He is extremely pissed off, don’t answer that.”

“Don’t tell me that the Immortal Accused, King of the Daemons, is scared of Cid Sophiar?” Cor teased Ardyn giving him an evil smirk.

It was always funny to see Ardyn on edge. Even Regis and Clarus couldn’t hold back their sniggers.

“No. I just don’t want to get shouted at.”   


End file.
